'Take a reading comprehension class?' Bannon ally belittled as she accuses lawyer of plot

An associate of longtime Donald Trump ally Steve Bannon accused an attorney who specializes in representing government whistleblowers of encouraging federal employees to break the law and expose classified information — but her accusation was quickly swatted down.

The point of contention was a quote that the lawyer, Mark S. Zaid, gave to The New York Times in an article detailing how federal workers were fighting back as Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk start mass layoffs.

Zaid issued a warning in particular about the administration's move to fire over a dozen inspectors general and push out various ethics watchdogs — a move that is currently being challenged in federal court as a violation of the proper legal process. “It’s a deterrent to lawful whistle-blowing,” he said. “The pathetic irony is that it’s encouraging people to break the law and leak classified information because the system is no longer in place.”

Natalie Winters, a co-host of Bannon's "War Room" show, posted this quote on X as supposed evidence the left is plotting an illegal leaking operation. "The lawyer behind the first Trump impeachment says that federal workers will have to leak classified info to get back at Trump for mass federal firings," she wrote. "This is their strategy."

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But Zaid was quick to fire back — pointing out that he in no way was endorsing this idea, simply warning that the administration was creating a situation in which it was likelier to happen.

"That's not at all what I said but why let facts get in your way. Perhaps take a reading comprehension class?" he wrote.

Winters' characterization, however, comes as MAGA loyalists in the federal government start looking for pretexts to threaten critics with criminal action based on protected political speech. For instance, Trump's nominee for U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Ed Martin, threatened Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) with prosecution over his use of a "bar fight" metaphor when arguing how Democrats should oppose Musk.